All There is to Say on the Subject of Muses
by let's point out the obvious
Summary: Strict beats and smooth moves, people- Gamzee offers up some inspiration for a mope-stricken Tavros.


Homestuck does not belong to me.

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><p>With all the horns cleared out of the way, Tavros had made a good size spot for himself in the middle of Gamzee's floor. He had enough room to lie back and fit his horns and, if he wanted to, flail his arms pointlessly. Enough room to flail his legs as well, but clearly that wasn't a matter of concern. Leg flailing was overrated, or so he liked to think. He could have a perfectly good time hanging out with his friend, dropping some strict beats, not flailing his legs.<p>

Of course it would be pretty cool to flail his legs on Gamzee's floor anyway, and make impressions in the weird plush carpet.

Then again, it'd be cool to just get up and walk around and really enjoy the rare occasion of getting out of his own hive for a while.

It'd be cool just to walk.

Oh.

"I think, uh, I just, depressed myself. Again."

It was becoming a common occurrence. Tavros tried not to let his paralyzed state get the best of him, but just looking at his four wheel device waiting for him in the corner of Gamzee's room settled a heavy feeling in his chest.

Above him, Gamzee gasped out an exaggerated, "Whaaaat?" He heaved himself off his desk, where he'd been spending some quality time staring at the lights in his ceiling, and dropped down onto the floor beside Tavros, stepping over the smaller troll to stare at him in awed concern, "Don't be bringin' that mopey shit all up in here, bro! You gotta cheer the fuck up!"

He bent over, placing his hands on his knees for leverage so he could get close enough to point his horns threateningly in Tavros' face. Which Tavros was pretty sure was unintentional. Pretty sure. "No good to be bein' all put out when there's miracles every fuckin' way you look."

Tavros could see his point. Sort of. Gamzee had invited him over and all he was doing was taking up space on the floor and being a sad sack. He smiled slightly just to be polite, "Uhm, yeah. Sorry."

Gamzee stared down at him for a long moment, the way he often did when he was focusing more on colors and mystical patterns than on reality, before grinning, "Nah man, don't be apologizing. It's all good."

With as little grace as possible Gamzee flopped down beside Tavros on the floor, where space hadn't been so carefully cleared, and landed on two of his rubber horns. They honked one after the other and Gamzee jumped, seeming perfectly aware for a split second before settling back down on the half-deflated horns, muttering as dazedly as ever, "Shit, man..."

Tavros snickered and looked away quickly as Gamzee leveled him with a mock-accusing stare.

"You fuckin' laughin' at me?"

There were a lot of things in life that scared Tavros; enemies that were too strong for him, long falls off high cliffs...Vriska. And under the right circumstances he guessed that Gamzee could scare him too, but as things stood now, Gamzee was one of the few people Tavros felt comfortable around. Comfortable enough to laugh in his face and not freak out that he'd completely bumbled everything and offended his friend.

"Yeah I, uh, I guess I am."

Gamzee propped himself up on one arm, grinning down at Tavros almost menacingly, "Mission accomplished, brother."

Tavros wasn't sure if he was talking about his miracle clown mission thing or just an effort to cheer him up, but either way he figured Gamzee was doing a good job.

"So what do you say we get some strict motherfuckin' beats all up in this bitch?"

To oblige his host, and because he simply couldn't resist some seriously stern beats, Tavros grinned back, "That is probably, exactly what we should do."

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Twenty minutes of music later, Tavros had yet to form a single rhyme.

Every word that popped into his head, even ones Gamzee offered, fell flat. It just wasn't happening.

Tavros pushed himself upright, resting his palms flat on the floor, "I just, uhm, don't know if I'm really up for making any, uh, strict beats today." He shrugged his shoulders, "I think maybe, I'm out of, uhm, inspiration."

Or he just couldn't think of anything to say that wasn't completely sad and pathetic. He didn't think anyone wanted to hear slam poetry about how weird it was that he couldn't feel his legs. For a while he'd tried to think of things that rhymed with 'paralyzed' and 'handicapped,' but could only come up with 'sterilized' and 'candynapped.'

He wasn't even sure if the second one was actually a word.

"Weak..." Gamzee said, sounding genuinely disappointed, then asked, "You want some motherfuckin' pie? Shit always inspires me."

Tempting. But despite feeling guilty at letting his friend down, Tavros wasn't willing to warp his brain with Gamzee's slime pies. The stuff was probably really, really dangerous and he didn't trust it. He shook his head, wondering if he should just go back to sulking in his own hive.

"Uh..."

Gamzee gave him another glazed look, painted mouth hanging slightly open. A moment later he cried out, startling Tavros into jerking away, "Shit, bro! You lost your fuckin' muse!"

Still unsettled, Tavros blinked up at him, baffled, "...what?"

"Your muse brother, your muse!"

Tavros had no idea what he was talking about. He didn't know where Gamzee got stuff like this- a muse? He hoped that if he just let the conversation be for a moment, Gamzee would veer off the topic and onto something else.

"That's your problem, bro," No such luck. Gamzee had mellowed out again, but was still stuck on the subject, "You're missin' your muse."

Tavros sighed and nodded, deciding to just follow along, "Uhm, yeah, I guess... I, uh, guess I am."

He jumped again as Gamzee's hands clasped tight on his shoulders, holding him in place as the taller troll leaned in close to him, "I'll be your muse, bro. I will be your motherfuckin' muse."

The intensity of his stare made Tavros squirm. Gamzee's behavior was stranger than usual and it was really starting to freak him out.

"Uhh, bro, you don't have to, uhm-"

Gamzee shook his head solemnly, "Nah, lemme help you with this shit. I _got_ this shit."

Tavros tried to back up, scooting away shyly, "Uh, what do you, uhm, what do you mean?" It couldn't hurt to ask. If Gamzee was really focused on this inspiration thing, Tavros should at least know what he was on about.

"Miracles, bro." Gamzee said, staring so deeply into Tavros' eyes that he barely noticed the taller troll scooting closer, closer, till he was right on top of him, "Talkin' 'bout motherfuckin' miracles."

Tavros barely had time to blink before Gamzee was kissing him, pulling him forward so that Tavros gasped and their teeth clacked together. He tried to speak but only ended up with a slick tongue invading his mouth, making his heart pound. He struggled away, reaching up to push Gamzee off him.

"Wha- uh, that's not-" He could feel the heat in his face and knew he had to be embarrassingly orange, "That's not, not cool, bro."

Tavros could put up with a lot, but a forced kiss was asking a little too much. But Gamzee didn't seem to be put off by his protest, just a little confused.

"It's not?" He rolled his eyes lazily from one side to the other in thought, considering some weighty issue that Tavros could never be privy to, "Oh, I got it." He nodded sagely, "Gotta be fuckin' tender and shit."

The hand on Tavros' right shoulder slipped up to cup his cheek. Grinning almost cheekily, Gamzee asked, "Can I kiss you, bro?"

He seemed to miss the point entirely though, because he didn't bother waiting for Tavros to answer, just leaned in to try the whole process over again. He was at least gentler the second time around, murmuring against Tavros' lips, "Motherfuckin' chill..."

And Tavros tried to chill. He tried to relax and not be freaked out by Gamzee's sudden need to kiss him, and tried not to let the complex details of troll relationships even enter his mind. There were way too many things to consider if he let his brain wander down that path, and he didn't feel like being even more overwhelmed than he already was. He just tried to sit back and let Gamzee work out whatever miracle magic muse thing it was he was going for.

And if he was being honest, it really wasn't so bad. He wasn't sure how inspired he was, but nothing Gamzee was doing was necessarily unpleasant. It felt sort of nice, in a strange way, and after a bit of nervous hesitation Tavros though he might even be able to-

Gamzee pulled back and licked his fangs, smiling lopsidedly, "Your face is fuckin' orange, bro."

Tavros tensed, embarrassed, and snapped his mouth shut. So much for kissing him back. No matter how close he and Gamzee were, to be reminded of the difference in their blood colors still stung a little.

"Yeah, well, you're, you're kind of, uh, purple."

Only very, very faintly. And it wasn't as if that were an insult anyway. If anything, Tavros had complimented him. But despite his complete failure to be insulting, Tavros gave himself a mental pat on the back for at least summoning the motherfucking gumption to say something.

Gamzee blinked at him, apparently surprised, until he barked out a laugh. "So I am, motherfucker! So I am..." He leaned forward to stifle his laughter against Tavros' shoulder, then turned his head slightly to brush his mouth against the other's neck, "It's a nice fuckin' color, bro." It took Tavros a moment to realize he was talking about the orange, "I like it."

His tongue pressed and slipped over Tavros' pulse, making him shudder. It occurred to him to tell Gamzee to back off again, but he couldn't seem to find the words.

"It's just like, " Gamzee sounded thoughtful as he kissed along Tavros' jaw, leaving a trail of gray and white makeup, "It takes a whole motherfuckin' rainbow, y'know?"

Tavros nodded and 'mmhmmed', would have nodded even if he didn't agree with what Gamzee was saying, since the feel of his mouth was convincing enough.

"I can feel it, bro," Gamzee said, "The colors are fuckin' harmonious."

His hands moved down lower, lower, to the hem of Tavro's shirt, then slipped under, drawing a gasp.

In an embarrassed whisper, Tavros managed, "C-can't say that's erroneous."

He felt Gamzee's lips curl into a smile against his cheek, "That's more motherfuckin' like it."

Encouraged, Tavros went on, "Makes sense from where, uh, I sit."

Gamzee hummed softly, licking his lips, "Fuuuuck, yes brother, that's what I'm motherfuckin' talking about." He sat back on his haunches and gave Tavros the slightest push, knocking him back to the floor where he landed with a muffled 'oomph.' Gamzee leered down at him, "Just keep spittin' out those fresh fuckin' rhymes, bro."

Wincing a little from having been knocked down, Tavros broke from his rhyming to ask, "Uh, what are, uh, you gonna do?"

Gamzee's hands moved smoothly under his shirt once more, pushing the fabric up and out of his way, "I'm gonna inspire you, bro," He said, smiling widely, "Gonna inspire the motherfuckin' shit out of you."

Tavros was speechless, and while that was hardly a good state for someone who was supposed to be formulating sick rhymes, it certainly lent itself to being kissed again. This time he didn't hesitate to return the gesture, even going so far as to nip Gamzee's lower lip lightly with his fangs. The taller troll ran his tongue over the bitten spot, muttering, "You nervy motherfucker..."

Again, that swell of confidence. He'd done something brash and gotten away with it, maybe even earned some respect for it.

Tavros laughed, pleased with himself, but the sound got warped as Gamzee dragged his claws up his sides, scratching the skin lightly.

"Ah, uhm, Gamzee, uh-"

But Gamzee just dug his claws in a little harder, silencing him, "I said fuckin' chill, bro. Chill and let the sweet motherfuckin' inspiration hit you right between the motherfuckin' horns."

Tavros bit down on his own lip to keep quiet, only nodding.

"Nooooow," Gamzee said, drawing the word out as he traced his claws back down Tavros' sides, "Why don't you lay some sweet motherfuckin' rhymes on me?" He craned his neck to brush his lips against the base of one of Tavros' horns, then licked it lightly, "Put this shit in perspective, brother."

Tavros was slightly mortified, trapped under Gamzee's perverse teasing, but he couldn't deny that the actions had inspired him enough to create some rhymes of his usual caliber. He wondered if maybe there were something to this 'muse' thing after all. Even if he sort of wanted to curl up in a corner and die of embarrassment at the tipsy, nervous excitement that had taken hold of his insides, he had to soldier on. It was his duty to the fine art of slam poetry.

"Okay, so,"

So rhymes, then. He took a moment to breath, waiting, counting out the beats until he felt like he could fall in with the music that was still playing faintly from Gamzee's husktop, "I don't know much about a muse, but I'll give you good reviews," His voice hitched as Gamzee's tongue traced up the side of his horn, pressing flat against the hard surface, "Um, you're the kind of bro who'd-" Who'd...who'd um...nude? Oh gog no. "Really he-help improve my mood."

Gamzee licked his lips, murmuring, "Nice."

"It's pretty s-sick, the way you lick, my, uh, my horns, that is," Certainly nothing else. He might die from a rush of blood to the face if he even considered that. "Something just c-clicks," He had to stop, breath, inch away from Gamzee's touch as his skin became too sensitive and started to tickle, "And makes my, my heart tick."

"I can fuckin' hear it, brother," Gamzee said, a slight purr to his voice. He reached a hand up to fondle Tavros' other horn, tracing swirls and patterns on it with the tip of a claw, "Lemme hear that motherfuckin' beat."

Tavros bit back a moan as Gamzee's tongue curled around the tip of his left horn, making him stutter over his words more than usual, "I'm g-getting kind of, uh, h-hot. You keep g-goin' for my," His voice cracked slightly and he squeaked, "w-weak- um- weak spots." He swallowed hard, digging his claws into the carpet to keep himself grounded, "I-I wanna show you what I, uh, g-got, but- ah- but I'm, well, distracted, uhm, more often than, uh...not."

Gamzee hummed softly and dragged his teeth carefully over Tavros' horn, "And what's got you so motherfuckin' distracted, my brother?"

Tavros didn't know why he bothered asking, but he tried to put together a coherent answer regardless, "Th-that!"

Okay, not so much on the rhyming that time. Though he recovered quickly, shuddering as he followed up with, "That...thing you're doing with you're, uh, teeth," He heard Gamzee's fangs click against his horn and winced slightly. It was borderline annoying, but it raised the hair on the back of his neck and made him squirm, "Makes me think you're just, uh, a tease." He thought maybe that was pushing it a little, but Gamzee had told him to keep going and that was what he planned to do, "At first I was, well, honestly, um- ah- full of, uh, unease." His voice caught again as Gamzee's lips closed around the tip of his horn, sucking suggestively, "N-now I'm just b-begging, uhm, p-please."

Gamzee gave Tavros's horn a final lick and sat back up, looking perfectly smug, even with his eyes half-lidded, "Daaaamn, bro. You oughta get slapped with a mouth that fuckin' fresh."

Tavros tried to think of a rhyme, something truly outrageous, but ultimately only managed to stammer out, "A-ahuh..."

Gamzee's inspirational techniques really had been a help, but after a point Tavros' capacity for thought teetered out in favor of aroused incoherency.

"Mission fuckin' accomplished again." Gamzee said proudly, and sitting back in such a way that suggested he was finished here, a way that made Tavros sit up too, stricken.

"Uh, you mean, um, you're, uh...done?"

Gamzee shrugged his shoulders, not moving away, just smiling lopsidedly.

After all of that he chose to stop? Tavros wanted to whine, plead, kick his stupid, useless legs-

No. No, fuck his stupid legs. He didn't need his stupid legs. He could lean forward and attempt to look attractive and alluring for once instead of just dorky, all without using his legs, "But uh, you haven't got a, a muse either. Right?" Or did he? "Because, I mean, uh, I could...like, inspire you too, if you, uh, want."

He could try, at least.

Gamzee quirked an eyebrow lazily, intrigued, "Oh?"

Tavros nodded slowly, careful not to knock Gamzee out with an accidental tip of his horns, "...yeah."

Gamzee leaned back, resting his weight on one palm, beckoning to Tavros with the other, "Well then get all up in here, motherfucker." He wrapped an arm around Tavros' midsection and pulled him in close, "We'll make some beautiful fuckin' music."

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Hope you enjoyed~ Reviews are greatly appreciated.


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